This has been bothering me recently: when my special attack is ready, why do I have to 'hold down' twice to activate it? Yes, sometimes I only have to do it once but the majority of the time I have to press and hold then once again before it activates.

Here's my attempt to display what I'm talking about. Keep an eye on the special bar. The first time, nothing happens, and I have to quickly press and hold again.

This is frustrating because the ~1 second wasted is time I could be spam tapping for attacks. Does anyone know why this happens and how to special attack properly?

Hmm. You could be right, but the advice everyone always gives is tap like a maniac. It would probably be less efficient to try stop tapping, delay, then hold. Ugh, this game.
– InsaneJul 25 '16 at 11:43

As mentioned Hypno is especially slow. For Golduck and other fast pokémon tapping like a maniac might do it. For Hypno you can tap once, make a tea, tap once more, vacuum the living room etc., which might be the problem for your special attack. Have you tried special attacking with fast pokemon?
– KhazJul 25 '16 at 12:29

The special attack is worth only if it is big as in the case of XL pokemons. Long attacks do like 50 dmg. But other do like 12 damage which is not worth it. Check your poke and plan accordingly. Also some need like 2 bars or 3 bars to do a move